KAGUYA lunar explorer (aka SELENE) Options

[Phil Stooke]

... and check out LPOD!

Phil

http://lpod.wikispaces.com/June+10%2C+2010+-+KAGUYA+SPECIAL

[climber]

A picture from Anglo-Australian Telescope: http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n0906/10kaguya/

Edit: picture's the same as LPOD Phil's link. You'll get only some comments

[djellison]

scheduled for 20:30 CEST today. Still not yet a bang!

Which was 19:30 UK time, or 18:30 GMT...which was BEFORE I posted 'bang'.

[SpaceListener]

Which was 19:30 UK time, or 18:30 GMT...which was BEFORE I posted 'bang'.

Ops!, I misunderstood. CST (Central Standard Time -North America) -5 GMT is different than CEST +1 GMT)! Good point!

On the other way, the impact localization was fast and it showed up that the impact zone might be on the crest of a crater. If it is true, the impact force would be strong and if it has grazed on the surface, the impact force wouldn't be lower. The IPOD pictures of Kaguya's impact had showed a very clear flash.

[Phil Stooke]

Here's an updated map of spacecraft locations, including Kaguya and an updated location for Chandrayaan 1's MIP.

Phil



(EDIT: Thanks to Timo Keski-Petaja for pointing out I erroneously labelled Mare Nectaris as Mare Nubium. I will correct and re-post.)

[charborob]

Many new low-altitude images of the lunar surface:
http://wms.selene.jaxa.jp/selene_viewer/index_j.html

[FordPrefect]

Just a remark: On the day after the impact, it was stated on the mission's homepage that the scientific data will be released to the public on 1st of November this year. It was mentioned right after the call for any observer who was able to capture the impact to send in the imagery for being put up on the website soon. For the life of me, I seem unable to dig out that particular article again. Anyways, I marked November 1st on my calendar. I can't wait to play around with the global elevation data...

[charborob]

Wait till Google get their hands on the data. Then we'll see "Moon" added to Google Earth. I can't wait for that!

[charborob]

Get a look at some of the last images taken by the HDTV on Kaguya! Very low altitude oblique views. Fantastic!
http://wms.selene.jaxa.jp/selene_viewer/jp...v/hdtv_077.html
Click on the images for full-size views. Click on the blue horizontal bar for a slide show.

Also some images by the TC:
http://wms.selene.jaxa.jp/selene_viewer/jp.../tc/tc_036.html

[ugordan]

Are those the last observations before impact? The observation date and filenames seem to suggest so. If so, these could be near-realtime downlinks from the HDTV camera on the way to the ground.

[SpaceListener]

Indeed, I think that the previous post about the HDTV pictures corresponds to the last impact thru the lowering angle of ilumination inclination from the first to the last picture and the impact was at dark side of moon.

[John Moore]

Nice craft views indeed, but what about Earth views in the next few days?

The general area in which Kaguya went down will soon be coming into (illuminated) view from our own perspective on Earth -- I wonder will we see any signs of an impact crater? As it was a very low oblique impact, ejecta patterns like we see with Messier A or Proclus...etc., may have formed. This is being very optimistic, I know, however, one never knows what might turn up -- perhaps, one of the powerful space-scopes will have a look, or, LRO might set the area down as a future target?

The illumination of the general area is expected to occur around the 23 June (New Moon on 22 June ~ 19.35) with just a sliver of a waxing crescent Moon coming through. The best time to observe would be after sunset, but then one only has an hour or so to observe anything, however, the following days 24, 25, 26 June might suit better before too much illunimation makes it impossible to detect anything at all.

John
www.moonposter.ie

[djellison]

The general area in which Kaguya went down will soon be coming into (illuminated) view from our own perspective on Earth -- I wonder will we see any signs of an impact crater?

Not a chance. Hubble, for example, has a resolution on the moon of about 60m/pixel. A Kaguya like impact would make a crater perhaps half the size, with an ejecta perhaps of one pixel, maybe two. Certainly indistinguishable from normal Lunar gardening without a similar 'before' image to compare it to.

LRO will go hunting for it - I'm sure.

[SpaceListener]

After interpreting the infrared pictures of Kaguya's impact, it showed a more or less circle shape. Thus I seemed that Kaguya impacted frontally against a wall of a crater. If the picture shows a elongated shape or eclipse, I might deduct that Kaguya was landing and rotating until it stops after a long line.

[dvandorn]

Also, please remember that cratering studies have proven that unless an impactor hits at an *extremely* shallow angle (like less than a degree or two), it still leaves a circular crater. Ejecta can be asymmetric, but the crater itself is almost always round. I know it's counter-intuitive, but it's a fact...

-the other Doug